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A Racist Punk Rock Poster?

A punk rock show poster depicting a cartoon Native American, seemingly intoxicated and with fangs, inspired Washington City Paper’s Jonathan L. Fischer to ask, well, is it racist? The poster is for Windian Records‘ third anniversary, and label owner Travis Jackson defends the poster, partially saying it’s consistent with the style of the artist who designed the poster.

But more interestingly, Jackson says he’s one-fourth Cherokee and adds that “white Indian” is one of his nickname, which inspired his record label’s name. “I’m Native and I’m not offended,” he tweeted, “How are you?” What do you think of the poster?

Does it make a difference that Jackson is one-fourth Cherokee and identifies as Native American? Read more of his poster artist Ben Lyon’s thoughts below, as emailed to Fischer:

“Anyway…I know I’m not a racist. I think anyone offended enough to make a big stink over the art on a poster for a punk show, that they probably aren’t gonna attend in the first place, probably needs to get a life. Leave it to white American 20-somethings to see a neo-nazi lurking behind every tree.(ha ha!) Who says Indians can only be drawn as stern wisemen? Sounds like stereotyping to me!(ha ha) I would have no problem showing the poster to any of my Native American friends. I stand by my work.”

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DCentric was created to examine the ways race and class interact in Washington, D.C., a city with a vibrant mix of cultures and neighborhoods. Your guide to the changing District is reporter Elahe Izadi.GET IN TOUCH

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DCentric was created to examine the ways race and class interact in Washington, D.C., a city with a vibrant mix of cultures and neighborhoods. Your guide to the changing District is reporter Elahe Izadi.

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